Beer: Ratings & Reviews

Reviews by Stoutlad:

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4.55/5 rDev +14.6%

Poured from bottle into a glass chalice.Pours a dark brown leaning toward purple, almost like prune juice in its color. No detectable carbonation. 2 finger creamy head which dissipated after about 2 sips. Its appearance was by no means thick although no light made it through the glass.

The aroma was of Belgian yeast. Bready, banana like. You can really pickup the prunes as well as other dark fruits, raisins, dry figs etc.

The taste was delicious! Sweet malts, caramel, subtle prunes. The alcohol burn and spicy notes pleasantly balanced out the sweetness of the malts. Great aftertaste. The mouth feel was chewy yet not heavy. It coated the tongue but didn't linger.

Overall this was a delicious beer. Not a true quad. Its characteristics were more akin to an English barleywine than a Belgian quad but it was delicious nonetheless. I just hate/love these collaborations between brewers because every so often they come up with a gem but it can only be had for a limited time, then you're left with the memories.I aged this one for 6 months. I think I'll age the remaining 4 bottles for 2 years and see what happens.

Appearance - Pours deep brown with ruby red highlights where light can penetrate with a tan half finger's worth of head. Fair retention, leading to a flat and barren surface with no lacing on the side. Very wine-like in appearance.

Taste - Follows the nose. The plum comes through well with a predominant dark fruit character, along with some brown sugar sweetness. Touches of alcohol in there, but doesn't get too hot. Very wine-like in the finish, with plum, black cherry fruit and dark chocolate in the mix.

Mouthfeel - Full in body with light carbonation. Not quite as chewy as some quads. Drying finish.

Overall - Good brew. Drinks similarly to red wine; like a cab or zin with a touch of carbonation. Maybe not the best or most complex quad out there, but certainly unique. I wouldn't be opposed to drinking it again.

12.7oz bottle poured into Mr. Pint Glass. Grabbed it on a whim at Woodman's tonight 3 minutes before the liquor section closed. Let's see what we got.

Appearance: This is fancy, with a cage and cork and all the good stuff! Pours a very dark brown with a hint of red and a rapidly-diminishing tan head. Almost dropped the glass on my head holding it up to the light to try and see through it! Yeah, really no light is getting through this.

Smell: Initially, it smells an awful lot like St. Bernardus Abt 12. Dark fruits, plums for sure, caramel, molasses, a little hint of hoppiness. Pretty complex. And intriguing. Keeps opening up more as I let it sit for a moment. Almost smells like a dry red wine when it's all put together. Definitely... interesting.

Taste: Yeah, this is... WOW. This is dry with a definite dry red wine theme to it. It's got a hint of sweetness up front, but that quickly gets spun into the aforementioned dryness. Really, really complex. This is way different from any other quad I've ever had.

Mouthfeel: Really, really clean and smooth. If I was blindfolded I probably would have guessed this to be a richer, thicker red wine. Unbelievable. This bottle is gonna go down WAY too easily.

Overall: I have not been this pleasantly surprised with a beer in a long time. At least with others that I've bought on a whim lately, there was a description of what to expect. Here... I didn't even look it up on BA or have anything to go off of other than the bottle's description. I am so glad I bought this - I suspect I may buy another 4 pack to age!

Very interested to see Sierra Nevada's spin on the Belgian-style quadruple. Thanks to Chris for splitting this one. Ovila appears black from atop, but shows some beaming ruby translucency when held in front of the light. A small and creamy khaki-colored head settles almost instantly to a ring. Some wet lacing hangs for only a few moments before dripping back down into the beer, leaving the glass fairly unscathed in the end.

Heavy plums dominate the aroma - no surprise there, really. Unfortunately they seem a bit "off" - almost chalky and slightly medicinal to a degree. Not quite off-putting, but not extremely enjoyable, either. There are, however, lots of vibrant juicy and sweet fruit notes beneath the strange plum blanket. Some light cocoa notes, molasses, and Belgian spiced yeast aromas catch on a bit more once this sucker warms up. Mild spices and even a tint of bubblegum. Overall, kind of a middle of the road aroma for the style.

Would you be shocked to hear that Ovila tastes like a quad with extra-dense plum notes? Because that's what I'm about to tell you. Some of the "standard" or common quad flavors are present - dates, figs, light black licorice, phenols, and very faint Candi sugar. But the plums really work their hardest to pull the wool over all of these things. Sadly, the plums on the palate come right along with the weird chalky and medicinal notes that the aroma was putting out there. Almost tastes like a chewed up vitamin. That strong chalkiness carries into the aftertaste along with a faint hint of sugar, dates, and plums. Medium bodied, mildly creamy with medium carbonation.

Not terrible, but the weird and vitamin-like aroma and flavor that seemed to cling alongside the plums was just too prevalent to be fully enjoyable. It masked what would otherwise be a solid Belgian-style quad and instead turned it into a forgettable, slightly better than average ale. Wasn't disappointed to have tried it, but I recommend passing it up, especially when options like Rochefort 10 and Abt 12 are readily available.

This beer pours a very, very dark plum color. It's nearly black with spots of plum purple showing up in the light. There's very little foam from an aggressive center pour, perhaps a half a finger that quickly dissipates to traceries of a head.

The smell? Initially it was booze. Straight up. Then hints of fruit gather in your nostrils. Plum? I think so. There's also just a trace of yeast in the background.

The first taste to hit my tongue was the sharp bite of alcohol, then maybe a little smack of chocolate and roast coffee, maybe even some good black tea. Then the fruit. Plum, raisin, maybe some fig. There is a very nice, lingering tartness and the finishing bubbly, boozy dryness. As the beer warms a bit, I'm getting more of the plum.

The mouthfeel is warm and boozy, smooth and slick, followed by the bubbly carb and a alcohol bite the back of the throat. there is a pleasant, lingering tingle.

All in all, a very enjoyable experience and a great sipping brew. I was expecting more plum very but I find I'm enjoying the subtlety here,. Quite nice. It would be interesting to age a couple of these.

12.7 oz caged and corked bottle. Pours dark amber with a medium creamy tan head that goes to a thin film that laces the glass some.

The aroma is bready malts, dark fruits, some floral wood, Belgian yeast and a bit of harsh alcohol.

The flavor is sweet woody floral malts, with dark fruits and some harsh charred alcohol. It's got some off notes that I can't identify too (plastic and cardboard). The mouthfeel is medium to full bodied with smooth carbonation.

Overall, I didn't care for this. I remember it being fruitier with less off notes last I had it (still not great though).

A very interesting take on a Belgian quad. Pours a very murky, imposing dark brown/black, very little head and almost no head retention. Smells of dark fruits, plums, dried black raspberry, some of the spiciness from the yeast comes through. Taste follows suit, tons of dark fruits and floral/spicy yeast. Mouthfeel is superb, extremely smooth with a great finish. This is closer to a good Syrah than to most beers.

Smell: Caramel and toffee, loads of dark fruit (I am sure that plum is part of it), banana, and dry spiciness. Wonderful aroma.

Taste: Not quite as good as the aroma but still nice. Very fruity, with an emphasis on plum, dates and cherry, with underlying molasses and caramel. There are definite Belgian yeast notes, with banana, clove and pepper. Finishes a little sugary.

Feel: Medium to full body with moderate carbonation. Somewhat smooth, but not enough dryness in the finish.

Overall: I have never had the standard Ovila Quad, but this version is good despite the lingering cloying sweetness. Better than the Ovila Dubbel and Saison, but still not top notch. I am not sure why Sierra Nevada can't nail these traditional Belgian styles - usually the mouthfeel seems to be the issue. But damn this is a good smelling beer.